Wildlife Film News
No. 212 – From the producer of Wildlife-film.com – April 2017
Love Wildlife Film News? We want to improve the resource, so please subscribe via PayPal if you can! If some of our many thousands of subscribers were to give a small monthly or annual donation, we could invest that money in updating the site and newsletter, including our daily Paper.li newsletter too!! Thank you. :)
Welcome to March's ace new full members! :)
Adrienne Gittus - Experienced underwater and topside camera person, documentary maker and award winning filmmaker, with Soulwater Productions, based in Bali!
Daan Hendriks - A field recordist and sound designer with extensive experience recording in remote locations in technically challenging situations. His main love and favourite recording topic is African wildlife sounds, and has released several sound effects libraries with African nature and wildlife as themes.
Gunjan Menon - A multi-talented Wildlife Filmmaking Student: Producer/Director, Camera Operator, Photographer, Editor, Story Researcher, Image Editor. Currently crowdfunding for her degree film, 'The Firefox Guardians'.
Quest to film the elusive Red Pandas and capture their unique bond with native Himalayan communities... Visit: igg.me/at/redpandas/x
Ian A Nelson - A nature & wildlife videographer based in Santa Rosa, CA. His short documentary "Northern Elephant Seals" screened at film festivals internationally and won for "Best Short Film" at the Vaasa International Wildlife Film Festival in 2014.
Check out the homepage for up-to-date availability: www.wildeye.co.uk
Due to a late drop-out, we've one place available on our Sound Recording in Sweden trip with Chris Watson & Jez riley French, 4–11 May The annual Wildeye overseas sound recording field trip / workshop will be led, as usual, by Chris Watson and Jez riley French. Plus, our special guest, Jana Winderen, will join us for a day or so to show us some of her approaches and talk about her work.
We will be staying in the region of Västergötland, close to Vänern, Sweden’s largest lake and home to an abundance of bird and sub-aquatic life. We’re also close to some other important environments such as the Göta river and canal, Vänern, Kinnekulle, Hornborgasjön, a smaller lake famous for its colony of cranes, and of course vast areas of forest and national parks.
There will be ample opportunities for recording in a wide range of environments, from harbours along the lake coast to deep woodland. With luck we’ll have the chance to encounter various species of wildlife including moose, terns, gulls, cranes, cormorants, sea eagles and perhaps some of the rarer birds in the area such as black-throated divers and turnstones. There are also wolves in some areas of Sweden and we’ll certainly have our ears open for them.
This will also be our first time visiting this area of Sweden so whilst we’ll be doing extensive research ahead of the course we’ll all be exploring together and this sense of shared discovery will, undoubtedly, add to this unique experience.
Our base is STF Lugnasberget, a small hotel around 15km south of the town of Mariestad. Here we will have the use of the entire site. Find out more & book here: www.wildeye.co.uk/sound-recording-in-sweden
NEW DATES: Wildlife Camera Operator Course, 30 June - 2 July Should I be shooting in HD or 4K? How can I get amazing aerial shots on a budget? What do I need to take super slow motion video without spending a fortune? What does ‘broadcast quality’ mean? How can I make amazing time lapse sequences with an ordinary DSLR? All these questions will be answered …
Whether you are hoping for a career as a professional wildlife camera operator or want to film wildlife as a fascinating hobby, this course will arm you with the knowledge and techniques to create stunning shots and sequences. As camera technology advances apace it can be difficult to know what equipment to use (and then how to use it!), with a high tutor to student ratio, this course is unique in content and value for money.
The weekend introduces the latest technology and camera systems for those who may upgrade their equipment in the future or have yet to buy a camcorder. The knowledge gained will help you choose and use the right gear for your purposes and will save you wasting money on unnecessary or inappropriate technology. The Creative Camerawork element will help you improve your techniques under expert instruction.
The course starts with a discussion about the latest camera technology and is then split into hands-on workshops exploring various aspects of camera use in wildlife film-making, including: macro, microscopes, slow motion, time lapse, aerial solutions and creative techniques. It is taught by wildlife film-maker Mike Linley, Piers Warren – Principal of Wildeye, independent wildlife film-maker Adrian Cale, Simon Beer – a video camera specialist from Production Gear Ltd. and aerials specialist Elliott Corke. See some short films from previous courses below:
Intro to Conservation Film-making, 4-6 August There are many conservation and environmental issues that could be tackled effectively if only the people involved were informed or educated about the causes and solutions that could make a difference. Films and the Media are some of the most powerful communication tools we have, but we need to make the right films and distribute them to the audience decision makers community corporation law enforcers government bodies who can create that change. So how do you go about this? How do you produce a clear message? Who are your target audience? What style of film would be most successful? What equipment do you need? How do you record sound? How do you edit everything together? What part should a narrator play? How do you monitor effectiveness?
All of these questions and more are answered in this unique hands-on training programme over a weekend in Norfolk, UK. It is designed specifically for those who are interested in gaining the skills to use films and the media to enhance the effectiveness of conservation and environmental campaigning. It is also invaluable for those who may need to employ professional film-makers for conservation productions. Participants on the last course said: "It was a great weekend thanks to our awesome and wonderful tutors. What a dedicated team! I learned a lot, laughed a lot and got tons of inspiration and strength to go on."
"Thank you for providing this course – the wider content opened my eyes to some big issues and new ways of getting involved. Having such a range of expertise and experience all in one room was brilliant." More here: www.wildeye.co.uk/conservation-film-making
Game Audio Production, 29 September-1 October Producing audio for video games is an expanding and exciting new career path requiring a unique collection of skills. This weekend course introduces the game audio pipeline from creation to implementation using industry-standard tools and software. Presented by leading sound recordist Chris Watson, game audio director and lecturer, Andy Gibson and guest game audio specialist Malin Arvidsson, who will demonstrate the kit and software used to create great audio content for games.
We will cover the recording and editing process, preparing the audio for the sound effects engine FMOD Studio, how to make game audio events, scatter sounds, multi sounds, 3D and 2D audio, and a variety of game audio implementation techniques. Finally, we will create audio sources and regions within Unity (the world’s leading game engine) and build a final project with your recordings used as ambiences within the game.
This course is aimed at the enthusiastic beginner, game designers who would like to know more or anyone who would like to a kick-start introduction to the world of game audio. It will also be invaluable for game designers, coders and producers who oversee the game audio process. More here: www.wildeye.co.uk/game-audio-production
Gorillas & Chimps in Uganda, 13-22 November After our fabulous trip last year to see/film wild mountain gorillas and chimpanzees in the forests of Uganda, whilst learning about conservation projects, we are returning in November this year.
For many people this is on their lifetime wish-list - so grab the chance while you can!
A unique itinerary is planned to give participants an incredible opportunity to see wild great apes and engage in their conservation. Highlights include: mountain gorilla and chimpanzee trekking, visiting the Ngamba Chimp Island Sanctuary, several game drives featuring lions, elephants, monkeys, buffaloes and more, learning about and participating in conservation projects such as tree-planting, teaching local people about the value of wildlife, and the Pedal Powered Cinema Project, staying at Dian Fossey Lodge.
As well as local guides and specialists you will be accompanied throughout by Madelaine Westwood (founder of GAFI (The Great Apes Film Initiative) and the Pedal Powered Cinema Project) and Piers Warren (Principal of Wildeye).
Participants on the last trip said: "Quite simply a life-changing experience!" "What a wonderful time we had, all seems like a dream now. Thanks for organising our trip of a lifetime!" More here: www.wildeye.co.uk/gorillas-chimpanzees-ugandaJust three places now available!
Intro to Wildlife Sound Recording, 3-5 November & 1-3 December Interest in the sound recording of wildlife and environments has grown rapidly in the last few years. Described in various ways: location, field, natural, wild etc., these recordings can be put to a multitude of uses including film, television, radio, art installations, web and CD releases, video game soundtracks, as part of musical compositions and so on.
In the production of wildlife films, the importance of the sound track and the role of the sound recordist is often over-looked. The successful recording of wildlife sound, and creation of the film’s sound track is a crucial and major part of the creative process. With new digital equipment available for recording and editing sound it requires skill and experience to do the job justice.
This two-day course aims to teach you the skills necessary to produce superb field recordings and give you hands-on experience with some of the latest equipment. The course is suitable for wildlife film-makers, sound recordists, radio producers, audio artists, musicians and video game designers, both professional and amateur. It is taught by Chris Watson, one of the world’s top wildlife sound specialists who regularly works for the BBC, and assisted by audio specialist Jez riley French. More here: www.wildeye.co.uk/introduction-to-wildlife-sound-recording
Check out the homepage for up-to-date availability: www.wildeye.co.uk
Deadline Extended: Wild Pages 3 Call for Entries!
The second edition of Wild Pages – The Wildlife Film-makers’ Resource Guide is still selling each month, even though it has 2014/15 showing on the front cover! Much of the info in that edition will still be valid, but there is clearly a need for an update!!
We've had lots of enquiries from people wanting be included too, so we are going to publish a third edition and call it Wild Pages 3...
We believe that Wild Pages has become an invaluable resource for many wildlife film-makers around the world (having been purchased on every continent bar Antarctica!) and especially for those that are unable to get to film festivals due to time or financial constraints… It has become an essential piece of kit!!
The categories for entries in the book include: Production Companies, Film Festivals, Equipment Hire/Sales, Distributors, Education/Training, Organisations, Stock Footage, Services, Location Managers/Fixers, Broadcasters/Channels, Publications & Freelancers (Various!).
NB. Relevant information about you and/or your company may help to reduce the amount of admin dealing with requests for work experience or co-productions for example. Your listing is free. Please enter into as many categories as are relevant to you or write a comprehensive explanation of your services and enter into the category that is most representative of your you/company.
Additionally, if you’d like your logo or a photograph (B&W only) included alongside your entry, you can for just UK£50: www.wildeye.co.uk/wildpages/logo.html
We are offering display advertising too.
We look forward to hearing from you soon... Go HERE!
“A Fish Full of Dollars”
A Film by Adrienne Gittus Documentary about Tanjung Luar Fish Market, East Lombok, Indonesia By Adrienne Gittus - Soulwater Productions
10 March 2017
The Problem
Sharks are a vital component of our complex marine environment. Without these apex predators, this ecosystem risks falling out of balance and may ultimately collapse.
Worldwide, fishing is pushing many species to the brink of extinction. This film examines Indonesia’s role as the number one shark fishing nation in the world. In Tanjung Luar, rural Lombok’s biggest fish market, sharks are a targeted species, where despite worldwide trends shifting away from shark finning, the trade persists. However, as shark populations decline, fishermen are forced further afield every year to satisfy the hungry demand of the Chinese and world market for shark fin soup.
Shark fin soup, a cultural symbol of prosperity and good fortune, is traditionally served at Chinese New Year celebrations, banquets, and weddings. WildAid says “For every Hong Kong wedding, 30 sharks must die”. Hong Kong and Guangzhou are major hubs for the trade, and despite past reports of falling demand, as a consequence of large-scale public campaigns launched by environmentalists and animal rights advocates, recent surveys show a surprising amount of shark fin is still being consumed.
Wild Aid have a simple message “When the buying stops, the killing can too”. The price of the life of a shark is getting cheaper by the year. The price of shark fins has fallen dramatically, but the fishing has not stopped.
Mantas and mobulas face similar harrowing circumstances. They are fished primarily for their gill plates, to be used in unproven cures for a wide range of illnesses, even cancer. These new and profit-driven “alternative medicines” are touted as traditional cures, however it is notable that even official Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioners do not support this trade.
Manta flesh is nearly inedible and without the value of the gills for spurious remedies, it is unlikely that fishermen would target them. However, despite law changes banning the fishing of mantas in Indonesia, some fishermen driven by fast profits, still consider the risks worth taking.
“A Fish Full of Dollars” explores the effects of the depletion of shark and manta species in the Lombok area, on both the lucrativeness of future tourism and the daily lives of local people, who have depended on the fruits of the seas for generations. What will happen when this resource is exhausted completely?
The Stakeholders
Tanjung Luar is a village filled with contradictions – riotous colour and charismatic people, living on the poverty line in squalid conditions. They are struggling to live a comfortable life, but appear to live it happily.
Around 5,500 people live in this small, cramped community.
This is a place with no running water and no internet, simple food dependent on the local fishing catch… and everybody knows everybody. Strangers are welcomed, and followed by children like the pied piper, curiosity overcoming their apprehensiveness.
It is also a place where the smell of death lingers everywhere, regulation of fishing laws is intermittent and corruption is rife.
Unfortunately, fishermen and their families are uneducated, with little hope to fight their way out of this cycle. They spend their entire lives doing the same mundane jobs. What hope is there for the next generation if the ocean’s stores are depleted?
There are laws protecting some species of sharks and rays in Indonesia, including the manta ray, whale sharks and leopard sharks. International protection agency CITES recently added Thresher sharks, Silky sharks and Mobula rays to its Appendix II, which, although not banning the trade of these species, offers increased protection and regulation through supervision and accountability.
However, both lack of law enforcement and corruption are major obstacles to the protection of sharks and rays in Indonesia. Local fishermen take a very small percentage of the revenue from shark and manta fishing, while large scale traders in Surabaya and Sumbawa walk away with big money, and have a vested interest in maintaining trade routes.
However, as international pressure mounts, airlines and shipping companies are gradually responding to the outcries. Recently, in early 2017, Air China banned the shipment of shark fins, a huge win in the battle to save sharks. However, FedEx, China Airlines, Lion Air (a local Indonesian airline) and numerous others, still actively participate in the shipment of shark fins.
The trade of banned species in Indonesia is a complex issue with many financial stakeholders. There is no simple solution to this problem, but we need to find a way to stop shark and manta fishing as soon as possible, if we are to preserve the environment for future generations.
Some conservation organisations have begun to take a more proactive approach to solving the problem. The Dorsal Effect, set up by Chinese Singaporean citizen Kathy Xu, provides alternative employment to fishermen as captains and guides of snorkel tour boats, allowing fishermen a much safer and more comfortable lifestyle, with a more stable income. Bali Sharks rescues live juvenile sharks caught as by-catch by local fishermen, and releases them within the Marine Protected Area of the Gili Islands, near Lombok.
A personal note from the filmmaker: Behind the scenes
“A Fish Full of Dollars” started with just a single visit to Tanjung Luar’s fish market as part of an excursion organized by the Gili Eco Trust. I really didn’t know what to expect. When I saw the extent of the market, the numbers and variety of sharks and other rays, and even mobula and a juvenile dolphin, I was dismayed that creatures I was so excited to see underwater were lined up before me in a gruesome parade. It horrified me that this was happening so close to where I lived and worked in a close knit diving community. I felt I had to do something to try and make people aware of what was happening.
Although filming the sharks and rays being butchered was heartbreaking, I forced myself to turn off my emotional reactions and focus on the job of filming. It was only when I began to edit and had to repeatedly watch scenes of sharks being finned, gill plates being cut from rays, and the carcasses being butchered, that emotion surfaced… tears rolled down my face while I worked.
Although I made a short film after that first visit, I felt that I had only scratched the surface of a very complicated issue and felt compelled to continue. I returned twice more for additional footage of different species, as well as interviews with local fishermen, a buyer, and a fisherman who had converted to become captain of a snorkeling tour boat with the Dorsal Effect. Four years and thousands of hours later, “A Fish Full of Dollars” was born.
Although most local people at the market in Tanjung Luar are more than happy to talk to me, providing I show respect for them and their culture, and in fact are often curious about me and why I am there, there were a couple of occasions where filming became difficult or even impossible. When we discovered a dolphin, thrown over a sea wall in an attempt to hide it from cameras, we were quickly surrounded by local people who demanded we stop filming. Some fishermen would speak to us off camera but refused to be filmed. Upon being informed we were at the market waiting for an interview, the fisheries officer simply did not show up. We waited for several hours and then gave up.
My most lingering memory of the market, is the smell of a mixture of fish, blood, guts and rotting flesh, which can only be described as the smell of death. It lingers on your palate and makes it hard not to feel queasy. It gets into your clothes and into your skin and hair, and takes hours of scrubbing to get out. Over a year later my camera bag still smells of it.
My other indelible memory is of the people. Every year you see the same people, in exactly the same place, doing exactly the same job. Day after day, year after year. Yet they appear to be essentially happy, smiling and laughing often, despite appalling living conditions, and seemingly monotonous daily life. The children run and play in the polluted sea and mud, as any fortunate western child might play in a grassy park playground. This is simply normal life for the people of Tanjung Luar. They know nothing else, and have no opportunity for any alternative lifestyle.
So, although Tanjung Luar is a horrifying place to my western sensitivities, and my heart full of tender spots for sharks and rays, “A Fish Full of Dollars” exposes the humanity of fishermen simply trying to make a living and feed their families. It highlights the many complexities in this issue whose participants have compelling stakes. We need to act to provide fishermen with education and alternatives before there are no sharks left to be fished, and it is just too little too late, a devastating outcome for the ocean and the people whose lives depend on the sea. There is a lot more to this story than simply some fishermen doing an evil trade in shark fins.
To find out more check out the link for the trailer for “A Fish Full of Dollars” on YouTube, or the filmmaker’s social media accounts below.
SOC’s Center for Environmental Filmmaking is offering students a three credit, three week immersive course in HD filmmaking under challenging environmental and expeditionary conditions in Alaska. Week one on campus and through distance learning prepares students in extreme filmmaking and survival techniques for the 8-10 day field work in Alaska. In week two the class flies to Anchorage and begins training in the field. We will concentrate on rock, glacier, and water. Then groups will produce short environmental and wildlife films. The last week of the course will bring students back to the university for postproduction and project completion.
Students are led by professor and filmmaker Larry Engel and survival expert Brian Horner. Students experience upwards of 20 hours of sunlight each day with hands-on experience under extreme filmmaking conditions. In addition, participants learn some of the most important survival skills needed for traveling and filming in remote locations and harsh environments.
Center Director Chris Palmer says:
“It is hard to find a pair like Larry and Brian who are more experienced at what they do. They are among the best in the business. Their reputations for exceptional teaching and outstanding work are second to none, and any student who has the opportunity to spend time with them is very lucky. Their superlative skills, love of the outdoors, and mastery of what it takes to find great footage and great stories, makes this class in Alaska a must-do adventure. It will be an unforgettable and a life-changing experience for all participants"
EcoComedy Video Competition 2017: Announcing winners, finalists, honorable mentions
The Center for Environmental Filmmaking and The Nature Conservancy thank each of the filmmaking teams who submitted films for consideration in the 2017 Eco-Comedy Video Competition.
We received a total of 48 individual submissions and they were wonderful!
To all of the filmmakers who took part, we salute your passion, hard work, and creativity!
It was difficult to narrow it down but after much deliberation it is our pleasure to announce the finalists of the competition:
Richard Brock's response to the BBC's Natural World film Puerto Rico: Island of Enchantment ...
"How excellent to see the lovely film about Puerto Rico which combined so well high quality footage of wildlife, people and conservation. It shows it CAN be done!
The title “Island of Enchantment” tried to avoid the dreaded “gloom and doom” so feared by those in charge (as was the case with the Thailand trio = deliberately misleading about the truth). In Puerto Rico that was actually the strength of the story – so well illustrated with fascinating, dedicated characters – trying to turn Wildlife Losers into Winners (please see my 50+ series on Brockinitiative on Vimeo and YouTube).
There are lots more positive stories out there about the REAL natural world. Surely the famous BBC Natural History Unit and David Attenborough have the responsibility to tell them as they are – not just to please the commissioners?
So, please pass on my congratulations and encouragement to Peter Fison for producing something that will hopefully result in more of the same, especially from the Unit which hardly has a good track record for this kind of positive, truthful production."
Letter sent to
Roger Webb, Mike Gunton and Julian Hector at the BBC.
Volesville
– One of Britain's rarest and fastest declining mammals – "Ratty" from "Wind in
the Willows" fame. No rat, its succeeded in a beautiful stone-walled stream in
famous Cheddar Gorge – "Somerset's Grand Canyon". But the water vole is a burrower in soil. How does it deal with solid stone walls around its home? (22')
New Project from member Scubazoo launched - Borneo Wildlife Warriors with Aaron Gekoski
From the makers of the excellent web series Borneo From Below, a new series called Borneo Wildlife Warriors follows English wildlife photojournalist, Aaron ‘Bertie’ Gekoski, as he trains to become a ranger with Sabah’s Wildlife Rescue Unit, a team of local vets and rangers who deal with human-animal conflict.
Featuring elephants, orangutans, sun bears, pangolins and much more, the series is as thrilling as it is informative, with breathtaking relocations and rescues of critically endangered animals. The world needs to know about these fascinating, yet threatened species and ecosystems - before it’s too late.
New Project from member Dominique Lalonde launched -
INTO NATURE with Dominique
Dominique invites you into nature with him to discover the wildlife of Canada throughout the seasons...
There will be one episode published each week,
the first started on March 10th, 2017.
Subscribe to his channel and watch the films so far:
Specialist Media Hire Service VMEDIA now Launched by VMI.tv
No matter how good your media management there are occasions when you simply must have more. You may suddenly find you need dozens of additional memory cards for surprises in the day’s shoot or just one extra specific SSD to cater for a last minute job. Either way, you need it now.
Enter VMEDIA, a new initiative from VMI, specialising solely in renting recording media. That is equally for clients who have rented a camera package direct from VMI as for those who need additional media to support their own kit.
“VMI tailors camera kits for rent from over 250 lines of equipment and no two client requirements are the same,” says Barry Bassett, Managing Director, VMI. “But what every job has in common is the requirement for memory cards. As people embrace higher quality with 4K the media demands are significantly higher than they used to be. That’s why we have elected to create a new company with a new website and unique service characteristics.”
VMEDIA’s inventory is extensive and includes high capacity 1 TB and 500 GB cards, RED MINI-MAG SSDs, drives for Convergent Design Odyssey and Atmos Shogun, XQD and Cfast 2 cards (for ARRI Amira and Alexa Mini), P2 express media and more.
New ecoDelivery service:
With ever-increasing fuel prices, and as an environmentally friendly organisation, VMEDIA uniquely offers delivery by electric-powered BMW driven daily into central London.
With no fuel or congestion charges, we can pass all of these cost savings onto customers and in doing so, charge a flat fee of just £25 each way – equivalent to the cost of a bike courier.
A dedicated drop-off point for clients to return media will be handily located in Fitzrovia.
The International Wildlife Film Festival celebrates a milestone forty years of exploring the natural world... 15-22th April 2017!
This April, Missoula will play host to nearly 100 diverse films from around the world and some of the most talented wildlife filmmakers working today.
This annual spring event draws industry, filmmakers, and audiences with a hunger for ethical and cutting-edge films.
The roots of the festival will be honored with a celebration of the life and work of Dr. Chuck Jonkel. A famed bear researcher and the inventor of bear spray, Dr. Jonkel founded IWFF in 1977 to be a film festival for accurate and ethical depictions of wildlife in films.
A small ceremony and unveiling of a permanent memorial at the Roxy Theater will precede a screening Walking Bear Comes Home: The Life and Work of Chuck Jonkel on April 20. Dr. Jonkel’s legacy of work for wildlife in the state of Montana continues in perpetuity.
The 33rd "International Festival of Ornithological Film" will take place from October 27th to November 1st 2017 in Ménigoute (Deux - Sèvres - FRANCE).
Ménigoute Festival’s main purpose is to inspire to the greatest public increased awareness of the need to conserve the natural environment. At the same time, it aims to encourage the documentaries’ production and broadcasting. About 40 ornithological and wildlife entries, French premieres, will be selected to be screened in competition during public performances.
Entries are free of fees.
Nine prizes, totalling about 16,930 €, will be awarded.
Many other activities are sheduled for the festival, including photographic exhibitions, conferences, art shows, guided visits to sites in the local area for their landscape and wildlife interest.
Congratulations to JHWFF's 2017 Legacy Award Recipients!
Each year, the Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival & Conservation Summit recognizes notable achievement in natural history science, media and conservation.
This year the Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival honors two outstanding conservation projects with Legacy Awards:
Greg Carr, Gorongosa Restoration Project and
Kris Tompkins,Tompkins Conservation.
This year’s honorees, Gorongosa National Restoration Project and Tompkins Conservation, will accept their Legacy Awards at a gala event slated for September 28, during the biannual Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival & Conservation Summit (September 25-29).
Widely considered the most prestigious honor in natural history filmmaking, the Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival celebrates the world's most innovative wildlife, nature and science storytelling.
Film Competition:
Regular Deadline: June 1
Extended Deadline (with price increase): June 15
What Workshops Do You Want to See at The Festival?
We're in the preliminary stages of programming for the 2017 Festival, and want to know what you want to attend. What workshops are you most interested in? Click here and take this two-minute survey: www.surveymonkey.com/r/2XRK25W
Important Dates:
May 1: Festival & Summit early-bird registration opens
June 1: Film Competition Closes
June 15: Late Film Entry Deadline (additional fees)
August 1: Finalists announced
September 24 - 26: Conservation Summit (Theme: Cats)
September 25 - 29: Wildlife Film Festival
September 28: Grand Teton Awards Gala & Film Competition Winners Announced
Your chance to win a prestigious award, cash prize of £5,000 and opportunity to reach millions through national exposure. Help raise awareness about British wildlife and celebrate our natural heritage. Winners and commended entrants will have their work showcased in a touring exhibition and stunning book, and will be invited to an exclusive Awards ceremony in London.
The £20,000 prize fund includes the latest camera kit from lead sponsor Canon.
The awards recognise the talents of photographers practising in Britain whilst also highlighting the great wealth and diversity of British natural history. A celebration of British wildlife as well as a showcase for photographers and videographers, both amateur and professional.
There are fifteen separate categories including animal behaviour, urban wildlife, habitat, animal portraits, marine life, the hidden secret world that lies in the undergrowth and a special award for Wildlife in HD Video. Also two junior categories - to encourage young people to connect with nature through photography.
The Netherlands’ main wildlife film festival is held in the city center of Rotterdam from 26-29 October 2017 and is now open for entries! WFFR screens movies with a central focus on the natural world, but also critical and informative documentaries on raising awareness, the environment and sustainability. We would like to invite both professional and non-professional filmmakers from anywhere in the world to participate. The competition is free of fees. The deadline for entries is 1 May 2017.
The competition offers awards in a wide range of categories of which this year the WFFR Virtual Reality Award is new.
Awards can be won in the categories:
Best Film Professional
Best Film Non-Professional
WFFR Environmental/Sustainability Award
WFFR Underwater Award
WFFR Newcomer Award
WFFR Virtual Reality Award
WFFR Awareness Award.
In addition to the awards attributed by the jury, an audience award will also be awarded to the most popular film chosen by the general public in the professional and the non-professional category.
You can find the submission form here and for any questions you can contact competition@wffr.nl
Selected filmmakers are invited to the festival to meet other filmmakers, professionals and our audience.
Many other activities are scheduled around the festival like photo exhibitions, an educational kids program, a gathering for filmmakers and a Nature Cafe. WFFR creates a unique platform in the Netherlands for wildlife filmmakers. We aim to inform and inspire the public by screening wildlife movies.
INFF Call 4 Entries 2017
The “Call 4 Entries” for the 2017 Innsbruck Nature Film Festival has been opened. We are looking forward to numerous submissions in the following categories: “Documentaries Nature”, “Documentaries Environment”, “Short Films”, “Animated Short Films”, “Young Talents <25” and “Young Talents <19”. Deadline: 15th of July 2017
This years' festival dates: October 10-13th!
You will find all the details as well as the application form for this year’s competition here: inff.eu/2017-competition
Film entries are open for:
Sondrio Festival 2017 – International Documentary Film Festival on Parks
(31st edition, Sondrio, Italy, between 10 and 26 November 2017).
The film festival and competition focus on documentaries featuring aspects of National Parks, Nature Reserves and Protected Areas, with an extra category, for documentaries made in natural areas and dealing with the environment, its conservation, human activities, agriculture and sustainable development.
Films selected for the Festival will be considered for the First Prize “Town of Sondrio" (4,000 Euros), the “Stelvio National Park” Award (3,000 Euros) and the “Lombardy Region” Award (3,000 Euros), for films shot in the European Union.
Entry forms and films should be sent not later than 15 May 2017. There is no entry fee.
Wild Film Festival Scotland in Dumfries 'a big success'
Organisers have said a new festival celebrating the very best wildlife film and photography in Dumfries proved "a big success".
The inaugural Wild Film Festival Scotland took place in the town from Friday until Sunday.
Special guests included Springwatch's Iolo Williams, Simon King of the Big Cat Diary and the woman dubbed the "human swan", Sacha Dench.
Organisers said a total attendance of more than 2,500 had been recorded.
Wildscreen supported the new festival which took place from 24-26 March in Dumfries, Scotland.
WFFS featured screenings of Panda Award-nominated and winning films, along with photography exhibitions, celebrity speakers, art and music.
Thursday 22 June at Sunny Side of the Doc, the international marketplace for factual content, will host WILD ON SCREEN - a day-long strand of content dedicated to the natural history factual genre. Co-curated by Wildscreen, the world’s leading wildlife film and TV festival, the day will feature exclusive sessions, pitching opportunities and networking events, bringing together an international community of producers and commissioners.
The collaboration will strengthen and nurture international opportunities for the natural history storytelling community across platforms and audiences.
Lucie Muir, Wildscreen CEO said, “We are thrilled to announce our new partnership with Sunny Side as it offers a fantastic platform for Wildscreen and our ever-increasing global community of wildlife filmmakers to meet, learn and collaborate, ensuring more stories about the natural world get told and seen by ever-growing international audiences.”
Irem Couchouron, Head of International Development for Sunny Side markets also commented: "We are confident that joining forces with Wildscreen Festival will open up further coproduction opportunities for our respective wildlife and natural history producers and contribute to better circulation of content to new markets globally.”
And the collaboration will continue at the next Wildscreen Festival to be held in October 2018 in Bristol, UK, where the Sunny Side of the Doc team will provide Wildscreen delegates with a unique chance to explore opportunities in the Asian market. With nearly 900 professionals from 40 countries in attendance, the Wildscreen Festival is the foremost event for the international wildlife documentary market.
Calling for wildlife producers, directors, and digital creatives!
Register & submit your next documentary ideas to Sunny Side of the Doc’s highly coveted natural history & wildlife pitching session before APRIL 21, 2017.
Selected producers will get to pitch in front of leading international buyers on Thursday 22 June as part of the session which is co-organised with Wildscreen Festival. The best pitched project will also receive a free accreditation to the Wildscreen Festival in 2018.
Meet Irem & Guillaume in Bristol, at the Wildscreen Offices, on April 19th to discuss your projects: Email
R.I.P. SATAO 2 - a giant amongst elephants
Another giant has fallen to poachers, and the remaining estimated 25-30 Tuskers survive in small pockets across East and Southern Africa, pursued by poachers and trophy hunters alike. You see it’s their tusks, 100 pounds each side to qualify as a ‘Tusker’, that is their crowning glory and their death sentence.
Our blog post earlier this week goes into the details of Satao 2’s death, and so right now my team and I wish to pay tribute to him, as we did in 2014 for his erstwhile companion Satao, also claimed by a poacher’s arrow. Every time one of these gentle giants goes down to a poacher or trophy hunter we lose another part of Africa’s soul.
Satao II, a 50-year-old great tusker elephant, was recently found dead in Tsavo East National Park, Kenya.
The world has lost one of its last "great tusker" elephants. Satao II was recently found dead during an aerial surveillance mission by the Kenyan conservation group Tsavo Trust. Conservationists believe the 50-year-old bull was killed by a poacher's poisoned arrow.
Actor Daniel Dae Kim to Narrate Blue-Chip Series Big Pacific
NHNZ, PBS and ZDF Enterprises announce today that actor and producer, Daniel Dae Kim (Hawaii Five-0, Lost, 3AD Productions) is set to narrate the upcoming blue-chip series Big Pacific. The series is to be featured at a preview screening during MIPDOC in Cannes this weekend and will have its television premiere on PBS stations this summer.
Two years in the making, Big Pacific breaks boundaries between land and sea to capture the most guarded secrets of the world’s biggest ocean.
Daniel Dae Kim remarks: “Living in Hawai`i, the Pacific Ocean is my backyard, so I’m excited to help tell the story of this magnificent body of water, especially in a way that highlights global environmental stewardship and harmony with nature."
NHNZ Managing Director and Big Pacific Executive Producer Kyle Murdoch says: “Big Pacific is our most significant co-production to date and brings together partners from around the world. We are thrilled to be working with trusted partners CCTV9 and PBS. When we were looking for a narrator for the series it was important for all of us to find someone who was close to the Pacific and understood its power and mystique; Daniel is a natural fit.”
Fred Burcksen, ZDF Enterprises’ Executive Vice President and COO adds: “We are very excited to be on board and are certainly as passionate about this project as the entire production team. Big Pacific will be a great addition to our catalogue, especially with a talented narrator like Daniel Dae Kim bringing the story to life.”
“PBS is the destination for fascinating and comprehensive science and nature programming year-round and we are excited to share Big Pacific with audiences this summer,” said Pamela Aguilar, Senior Director of Programming & Development for PBS. “With the Pacific Ocean as his backyard, Daniel Dae Kim is uniquely positioned to help tell the stories of the ocean’s rarest and most dazzling creatures.”
Over four cinematic episodes, Big Pacific moves throughout the Pacific Ocean to present a broad range of locations, species, natural phenomena and behaviours. Each episode focuses an iconic characteristic of the Pacific: Passionate, Voracious, Violent, and Mysterious, to weave stories from across the Pacific that illustrate the multi-faceted character of this ocean.
Big Pacific will engage its audience with immersive storytelling, the latest science and an original musical score. Filmed across 25 countries, Big Pacific will feature the Pacific Ocean’s most iconic creatures, including the massive blue whale; intrepid salt water crocodiles; coast surfing sea otters; enigmatic clownfish colonies; insatiable red sea urchins; and the prehistoric chambered nautilus.
Big Pacific, a 4x60’ plus ‘Making Of’, is made by NHNZ, co-produced with PBS and CCTV9 in association with ZDF, ZDF Enterprises and ARTE France. Distributor ZDF Enterprises will be launching Big Pacific to international TV buyers at MIPDOC 2017 with a special preview screening on Saturday, 1st April at 6 pm in the JW Marriott Theatre, Cannes. Big Pacific will also feature at MIPTV 2017 in ZDF Enterprises’ UHD Panel on Tuesday, 4th April, 10:15 am to 11:15 am, Sony 4K Ultra HD Theatre, Palais des Festivals, Palais 4, Cannes
'Filming the Firefox' with new member Gunjan Menon
One of the simplest aspects of wildlife conservation also happens to be one of the most challenging: spreading awareness.
The simple part is putting the information out there; the challenge is getting people to pay attention to it. That’s why, in addition to their own awareness efforts, organizations like the Red Panda Network (RPN) actively collaborate with artists, professionals and communicators who share their passion for wildlife conservation, and whose unique platforms can further extend the reach of their crucial message. Recently, RPN has partnered with an up-and-coming professional who is using one of today’s most powerful mediums—film—to broadcast the plight of the endangered red panda to a wider audience.
Meet Gunjan Menon, a film student at University of the West of England whose love of cinematography, wildlife and red pandas in particular has inspired her short film in the making, “The Firefox Guardians.” Planning to film on location in Eastern Nepal, Gunjan is currently running an Indiegogo campaign to fund her ambitious project.
Born and raised in New Delhi, India, Gunjan relates how her interests in film and wildlife coincided early on in life. “I started taking photos at a young age, playing around with my dad’s camera phone,” she remembers. “Most of my subjects were animals—primarily birds, dogs and cats—and I enjoyed trying to capture their emotions in my photos. I was also fascinated by the world of cinema, including David Attenborough’s wildlife documentaries, which made me want to learn the art form. When I saw Mike Pandey’s ‘Shores of Silence,’ a short film that sparked legislative action to protect whale sharks, I realized what a strong medium filmmaking was for bringing about change. This inspired me to combine my love for wildlife with my passion for filmmaking.”
New documentary follows experimental human wolf pack in the Highlands - Lisa Marley
An award-winning Aberdeen wildlife filmmaker is producing a new documentary, which will follow an experimental human wolf pack in the Scottish Highlands.
Lisa Marley, 25, is making a film, Project Wolf, which will highlight Scotland’s studies into reintroducing the species, which died out in the 18th century.
The film will follow the activities of charity Trees for Life’s Project Wolf – a human wolf pack – as it investigates the environmental impact of reintroducing wolves to the Caledonian Forest in Glen Moriston, near Loch Ness.
By recreating the behaviours of natural predators, the charity hopes to discover how this would affect the movements and grazing of red deer in the area.
Wildlife and conservation enthusiasts can donate to a crowdfunding campaign until April 19 to help bring the film to the big screen, in exchange for a series of perks, ranging from books and gift cards to production credits.
Ms Marley said: “I have always been interested in rewilding. The idea of reintroducing species to an ecosystem in order to restore natural balance is inherently fascinating.
“Trees for Life’s work in the Highlands is at the forefront of rewilding study in Scotland, and its work with a human wolf pack allows for a unique perspective on the issues surrounding rewilding.
“By following the wolf pack’s movements, and interviewing key figures, I hope to get a greater understanding of the importance of this work.
“Project Wolf is a passion for me: it’s a wonderful story that I feel is important to tell, and I would love to be able to do that in my own way.
“But I can’t do that alone, and I hope that the wildlife and conservation communities will share my enthusiasm for learning more about this incredible project. More here: pressandjournal.co.uk
We are big Jeff Bridges fans....and he's a big grizzly bear fan. He joins Ecologist Chris Morgan (BEARTREK, Bears of the Last Frontier, Siberian Tiger Quest, Great Bear Stakeout) to talk about the North Cascades grizzly bear and why he hopes the bear abides! To know more, and learn how grizzly bears are captured, and populations rescued from the brink of extinction, watch the 13 minute film here (some sweet surprises): youtu.be/wkblRUv17dY
How do you catch a grizzly bear, and why!? There are fewer than 10 grizzly bears left in the North Cascades in Washington State. Ecologist and bear expert Chris Morgan (PBS, BBC, National Geographic) hosts this entertaining and moving 13 minute film that shows us first hand how bear populations can be saved by translocating them from one area to another. A story beautifully told, with pace, facts, and emotion. Please share it far and wide for the bear. Our mountains would be empty without them. Please share your opinion about restoring grizzly bears to the North Cascades with the National Park Service here: parkplanning.nps.gov Visit: theoatmeal.com
Dereck and Beverly Joubert attacked by a buffalo but recovering well.
Award-winning filmmakers Dereck and Beverly Joubert were gored by a buffalo on Thursday night, 3rd of March, in the Okavango Delta, Botswana. Both were injured and Beverly was committed to an intensive care unit, where she is recovering well, according to an update on their Facebook page. via africageographic.com/blog/acclaimed-filmmakers-gored-buffalo-botswana
In an update on their Facebook page, the couple thanked their supporters for the incredible support from all over the world. After a very long and tough week, Beverly told her Doctors that she needed to heal fast because she has rhinos to move, this in reference to the Rhinos Without Borders campaign to move 100 rhinos from high risk to low risk areas. This statement is typical of her undeniable strength and her tendency to put wildlife before her own interests.
Dereck and Beverly were walking to dinner in their camp in the Okavango when a buffalo charged them from the darkness. Dereck suffered some bone fractures but Beverly was seriously injured, with the horn causing extensive damage. Dereck’s actions that night saved her life, and miraculously the buffalo’s horn missed major arteries, organs and her spine. Four operations later, Beverly has fought fiercely and finally seems to be out of immediate danger.
There is obviously a lot of recovery still to come, however she has walked, she has had sutures removed and she asks after the wellbeing of others rather than herself.
There is obviously a lot of recovery still to come, however she has walked, she has had sutures removed and she asks after the wellbeing of others rather than herself.
The BBC Earth Unplugged team have been streaming live from a "jungle school' in Sumatra. Started on Monday 13th of March, through to 22nd of March, they met three critically endangered young animals and the people teaching them the skills to survive in the jungle.
A new study from BBC Earth and the University of California has revealed that watching nature documentaries can make you happier, so we're on a mission to bring real happiness to as many people as possible by improving their connection to nature.
"A connection with nature can make you happy and it’s our mission to bring nature and the natural world closer to you. Talk to our Happybot on Facebook Messenger to build your own personalised Real Happiness Moment."
Screen Time To Wild Time: 60 Years Of The BBC Natural History Unit by Mike Collins
Like millions of Britons I’ve grown up on a healthy diet of wildlife telly. I can just about remember the seminal Life on Earth in the late 1970s and have the book, signed by my two Grans, to prove an early appetite for these programmes made in Bristol. This was an era when films like this shaped the national conversation and were part of the routine of families sitting down together to watch jaw-dropping images and compelling stories beamed into their living rooms from around the world.
"Mary Adams And Other BBC Female Pioneers Who Inspired My Love For Natural History" by Elizabeth White Producer/ director BBC Studios' Natural History Unit. Producer of ‘Islands’ for Planet Earth II
If you ask someone to describe what a wildlife filmmaker looks like, I suspect they’d paint a portrait of a man with a beard and a big camera wearing camouflage gear. But I’m a wildlife filmmaker - I’m a petite, 38-year-old woman, and there are plenty of others like me.
I’ve worked as a wildlife filmmaker for the BBC Natural History Unit for the last 13 years, most recently producing and directing a film about Islands that opened the recent David Attenborough series Planet Earth II. In the three and a half years of making the episode, I camped in the world’s largest penguin colony, watched racer snakes hunting down baby marine iguanas on a remote beach in Galapagos and got eaten alive by mosquitos in the Seychelles (it was not an island paradise experience...).
When it broadcast in November last year, ‘Islands’ became the most-watched wildlife show for more than 15 years, attracting more than 12 million viewers, and was the most requested programme on iPlayer for the whole of 2016. Something many people commented on, was how “nice” it was that it was produced / directed by a woman.
In the vastness of the Pacific lies the Galapagos, one of the greatest treasures of the natural world and a biological wonderland.
Located on the equator, it’s a spectacular archipelago where evolution has proceeded at an extraordinary pace. But these islands are changing and this tropical paradise is under threat as our climate changes faster than ever before. In a brand new three-part BBC One series, Liz Bonnin and a team of world-renowned scientists assemble for Mission Galapagos, one of the most ambitious scientific expeditions ever attempted in this remote archipelago.
In episode one, Cauldron Of Life, Liz Bonnin joins a scientific team aboard the research vessel the Alucia on an expedition across the Galapagos Archipelago.
The journey begins on the Galapagos’ west side at the youngest and most volcanically active islands in the archipelago, Isabela and Fernandina, home to a richly diverse wildlife scene. Here, Liz and the team journey into the clouds above ‘Wolf’, the tallest volcano in the Galapagos, where they join a group of biologists hunting for the rarest of species: the elusive and bizarre pink iguana, which teeters on the edge of extinction. But how and why did it come to live on the top of a volcano?
Back on the research vessel, Liz boards Alucia’s Triton submersible to descend a kilometre, the deepest anyone has ever dived on the Galapagos Islands, into the ocean abyss in search of a new species hiding in the darkness. Liz also travels to one of the most remote locations in the Galapagos, Alcedo Volcano, in search of the largest population of giant tortoises. Plagued by drought in recent months, scientists are keen to find out how this prehistoric species has fared.
Finally, Liz helps out with a ground-breaking science experiment to x-ray marine iguanas that have so far stunned the scientific community with a new mutation. As with all life on these remote islands, the key to survival is adaptation.
For many, wildlife photography is a quest for trophies, not conservation: Shekar Dattatri
Wildlife film-maker Shekar Dattatri tells Nitin Sreedhar how documentaries and wildlife films can help in the conservation of animals.
Wildlife film-maker Shekar Dattatri won the National Award in 1987 for his first film, A Cooperative for Snake Catchers. Since then, he has worked with the likes of National Geographic, Discovery Channel, etc. Here, he tells Nitin Sreedhar how documentaries and wildlife films can help in the conservation of animals. Edited excerpts:
How did your passion for nature photography and film-making start?
I was fascinated with nature even as a child and enrolled as a volunteer at the Madras Snake Park when I was 13 years old. A couple of years later, a friend generously lent me his Nikon camera and, soon, it became an extension of my eye. In the mid-1980s, I got a chance to assist a film-maker couple from the US on a documentary about snakebites and I was bitten by the film-making bug.
How can documentaries and wildlife films help in animal conservation?
Not all documentaries on wildlife have a tangible impact on conservation. However, well-researched and powerful films that depict a problem and its potential solutions can, when screened for decision-makers, make an impact and lead to positive change. The film Shores of Silence (2000) by Riverbank Studios about the then largely unknown massacre of whale sharks in Gujarat is a good example, as is my film Mindless Mining: The Tragedy of Kudremukh.
Chris Palmer, a professor, speaker, author and film producer, always knew that he wanted to start a nonprofit to promote environmental films. This became a reality in 2004 when, after a career that included being an officer in the British Royal Navy, working on Capitol Hill and leading the production division of the National Wildlife Federation, Palmer joined American University as a faculty member in the School of Communication and launched the Center for Environmental Filmmaking.
The Center’s programs range from “Classroom in the Wild,” a one-week offering over spring break in which 14 students travel to the Chesapeake Bay to gain environmental filmmaking experience to various scholarships and prizes that the Center provides to students through the support of Center donors. When deciding to create the Center and become its director, Palmer said he felt there was a need for students to be inspired to produce powerful environmental films, and said that the Center at AU remains one of very few similar institutions found at universities worldwide.
“I started the Center because I think there is a strong need to inspire the next generation to produce films that help people be good stewards of the world,” Palmer said.
While shooting for a conservation film about rhino poaching in South Africa, cameraman Garth De Bruno Austin was approached by a wild rhino who was apparently in search of a nice belly rub. The unusual encounter was captured in the 15-second video above.
“If a rhino walks straight up to you while you’re filming and wants some rubs… you better rub that rhino like your life depends on it!,” Austin writes. “Lucky for me she left my URSA Mini 4K camera alone!”
New film lets David Attenborough share the secrets
of an animal he’s waited 60 years to see in the wild
Footage shot in Brazil by a UK film crew is helping to unlock the secrets of one of the world’s least studied mammals – the giant armadillo – and shedding fresh light on how the food and lodgings they provide underpin the biodiversity of Earth’s biggest tropical wetland.
The crew from the Glasgow-based independent TV production company Maramedia worked in the 140,000 sq kms Pantanal wilderness with Royal Zoological Society of Scotland (RZZSS) biologist, Arnaud Desbiez and his project team to produce the documentaryHOTEL ARMADILLO, premiering on BBC2 on Friday 7 April (9pm).
Among the revelatory scenes captured in the film are:
the first broadcast moving imagery of a wild giant armadillo newborn baby
the first pictures taken inside a giant armadillo burrow
new detail of giant armadillo parenting
the first full colour film of a giant armadillo by night
the clearest sequences yet of how giant armadillo burrows provide food and lodgings for at least 80 other species
HOTEL ARMADILLO’s producer-director -cameraman Justin Purefoy says: “Viewers will never have seen giant armadillos filmed like this before. Rare, solitary, living mostly underground in very remote habitat and emerging only at night makes them extremely challenging to find, let alone film – so much so that even David Attenborough, our narrator, still yearns to see one in the wild despite embarking on the quest 60 years ago!”
It took the Maramedia team two years to plan and make their surprise-filled film – a shoot which executive producer and company co-founder Nigel Pope says was only possible due to close collaboration between the filmmakers and scientists.
He explains: “We’re proud that by building strong relationships with conservation scientists like Arnaud we are not only able to share incredible and important stories about our natural world but are also adding to science’s studies of rare creatures. With HOTEL ARMADILLO, we are especially thrilled that a global audience now will have the chance to understand more about the rare and secretive giant armadillo – an eco-system engineer of vital importance.”
Once shooting finished, Maramedia left some of its film kit with the Great Armadillo Project research team to allow high-quality filming to continue. The latest reports from the field can be found at www.giantarmadillo.org.br.
A mini-film airing at the end of the main documentary reveals some of the hazards faced by the film crew, including sending a volunteer into a six metre-deep burrow to fit a camera, and diving in waters filled with caiman, piranha and stingray to rescue a downed and drowned drone.
Other challenges involved finding batteries powerful enough to keep motion triggered cameras and infrared lights running for 48 hours or more, regularly looping and unlooping many metres of cable through trees and many day long hikes laden with kit seeking out the elusive animals and burrows.
By coincidence, it is 60 years since HOTEL ARMADILLO’s narrator David Attenborough first introduced British TV viewers to the armadillo family, during an episode of ZOO QUEST which also led to Sir David’s first appearance on a Radio Times front cover. He had hoped to see a giant armadillo in the wild then but has still never managed it.
At the voiceover recording, Sir David told Maramedia: “I have spent a long time trying to get a giant armadillo and no luck at all and when I see your film I suddenly realise why. I mean, they are hardly ever above ground.”
He also recalled his first encounters with the armadillo family. “In the middle of the 1950s I went off to Paraguay...(where)... there are all kinds of armadillos - at least half a dozen different species. The little 3 banded was a charming little thing - running away on its tiptoes and when you catch them you can pick them up like little oranges and put them in a bag. But what used to happen was that the armadillo would suddenly open up... (and)... start trotting and you would see the bag rolling across the landscape - a very entertaining sight. Not very responsible. It isn't something that you ought to do these days, but years ago that was what zoos did.”
HOTEL ARMADILLO is a Maramedia production for the BBC2 series NATURAL WORLD and PBS, USA. It gets its first UK broadcast on Friday 7 April (9pm), narrated by David Attenborough. The documentary was directed/ filmed by Maramedia’s Justin Purefoy, with wildlife photography by Lyndsay McCrae. The executive producer is Nigel Pope (Maramedia) and the Series Editor for the BBC is Roger Webb. Music composed by marvellous member Fraser Purdie!
CBeebies app retells Sir David Attenborough's escapades for toddlers
The 90-year-old broadcaster launches an animated series in which he revisits some of the most famous scenes of his TV career.
He has waded with chimps, whispered with lyrebirds and cuddled mountain gorillas, but now Sir David Attenborough will be encountering some of his most challenging creatures yet – in a new animated series for toddlers.
The 90-year-old broadcaster is launching a series for very young children on the CBeebies app Storytime, in which a cartoon version of the naturalist revisits some of the most famous creatures of his career.
The first episode, entitled David and the Gorilla Quest, recreates his famous 1978 expedition to Rwanda to film mountain gorillas, when one of the baby animals climbed on to his lap. This footage was on TV in 1979’s Life on Earth series.
"This is extremely upsetting for me to write, as you all know i have been working very hard on the film and was meant to be flying to India soon. I have interviewed Lisa, and what an amazing woman she is! However due to political issues completely out of my control- the India shoot has now been cancelled!
Some of you may or may not know, but a few weeks ago the BBC were BANNED from filming in India's Tiger Reserves for 5-YEARS! This has made it completely impossible for me to go and film there! I have sent them ALL of my documents explaining that this is a student film, but due to the courses BBC affiliation its over & the government simply won't let me go!!"
'The other side of the Kaziranga story' by Krishnendu Bose
BBC’s ‘Killing For Conservation’ is guilty of grossly undermining rhino conservation efforts in the national park: A review.
In another five years, the BBC will celebrate its broadcasting century.
The BBC has, in many ways, defined public broadcasting of documentaries and news and brought credibility to the search for truth.
But Killing For Conservation seemed to subvert all that it has stood for: informed debate, analysis with scholarship, balanced views.
This 23-minute documentary, written and presented by Justin Rowlatt, was broadcast on BBC News last month. It says the forest guards in Assam’s Kaziranga National Park, home to two-thirds of the world’s One-horned Rhino population, have orders to kill poachers.
Rowlatt announces this in the first minute of the film and proceeds to prove it in the next 22. Good documentary film-making requires us to investigate the truth from multiple perspectives before arriving at a subjective version of it. Unlike raw news, documentaries are meant to be subjective, a personal position on the issue by way of honest inquiry. But Rowlatt doesn’t provide any other views. Viewers don’t have enough context to make a choice to reject his argument. Rowlatt wins in the end. Or does he?
The True’s beaked whale (Mesoplodon mirus, True 1913) is a poorly known member of the Ziphiidae family. Its distribution in the northern hemisphere is thought to be restricted to the temperate or warm temperate waters of the North Atlantic, while a few stranding records from the southern hemisphere suggest a wider and antitropical distribution, extending to waters from the Atlantic coast of Brazil to South Africa, Mozambique, Australia and the Tasman Sea coast of New Zealand.
This video is from the PeerJ Publication: "True’s beaked whale (Mesoplodon mirus) in Macaronesia. PeerJ 5:e3059 doi.org/10.7717/peerj.3059". This group was formed by three adult or sub-adult whales. Social behavior of this species is still unknown but the group seemed to dive in a coordinated manner, as has been observed in other species of beaked whales.
Credit: Roland Edler.
Are you the next David Attenborough? NFTS hopes to teach next star documentary maker!
Calling all would-be David Attenborough documentary makers.
Do you remember the baby iguana that barely made it out alive, the fascinating insights into the lives of huge gorillas and the killer whales that used amazing team tactics to hunt their prey?
Well, now you can follow in those filmmaker’s famous footsteps thanks to a new partnership between the National Film and Television School (NFTS) and the RSPB.
The UK’s largest nature conservation charity has teamed up with the world-leading film school on its Directing and Producing Science and Natural History MA.
Bosses hope that by working closely together, a new generation of filmmaking talent will be inspired to create engaging content that champions the charity’s conservation cause.
Paul Reddish, course leader, said: “It would be great if we found our Attenborough but I’m not sure if there is another one out there - he’s unique.”
He added: “But what I do hope is that we find producers and directors who go on and make a series as great as Planet Earth 2. “The course is about science and natural history, but I’m also hoping we will have great story tellers.”
Students will benefit from access to RSPB nature reserves to practice their wildlife filming.
Greenpeace Esperanza on patrol in West African waters
Food security in West Africa is under heavy pressure from an intensified industrial fishing fleet. The Greenpeace ship Esperanza is on patrol in West African waters to document and help authorities address what might best be described as a Wild West' at sea: youtu.be/NZXLMTb7M0E
Hans Zimmer to score Sir David Attenborough's Blue Planet II
Sir David Attenborough’s Blue Planet II will be scored by Oscar-winning composer Hans Zimmer.
Hans, who also created the music for Planet Earth II, will compose the theme and score for Sir David’s new BBC series alongside Jacob Shea and Jasha Klebe, his co-composers in music production company Bleeding Fingers.
He said: “It’s an incredible opportunity and privilege to be working again with the BBC’s natural history unit on such a globally important project.
“It’s a joy to compose to such beautiful, powerful and inspiring pictures.
“Once more the BBC has raised the bar and we intend to rise to the challenge.”
The new seven-part series will be broadcast later this year on BBC1.
Someone Made A David Attenborough Parody Of 'Bin Chickens' And It's Magnificent!
A truly beautiful look at these terrible birds.
You either love them or you're a sensible person: The Ibis, affectionately known as the "Bin Chicken" has now gotten the David Attenborough treatment with a "Planet Earth" parody.
The man behind the video, David Johns, explained that he was a big fan of Attenborough and the "Planet Earth" series, so he and his friends thought they could do their own wildlife filmmaking, "using the most disgusting bird".
If you liked COWSPIRACY, you will love their new film!
What the Health is the groundbreaking follow-up film from the creators of the award-winning documentary Cowspiracy. The film exposes the collusion and corruption in government and big business that is costing us trillions of healthcare dollars, and keeping us sick.
What The Health is a surprising, and at times hilarious, investigative documentary that will be an eye-opener for everyone concerned about our nation’s health and how big business influences it.
Disclaimer: Wildlife Film News publishes information and opinions as a service to its readers.
The producer does not recommend or endorse any particular method, institution, product, treatment, or theory.
Opinions expressed in Wildlife Film News are not necessarily those of the producer.